Time, then, to have a proper look at the Radio Times curated poll of the 40 most powerful DJs in British radio, and see what it all means for us as music fans:
1 Jonathan Ross (Radio 2)
Lets Andy Davies choose the non-Bowie records, which is a good thing given his ridiculously broad tastes which have in recent months included Radio 2 plays for the Kills and the Rakes. Vague memories here of the Electric Soft Parade delaying virtually the whole show thanks to a broken keyboard.
2 Terry Wogan (Radio 2)
It were all Clifford T Ward and Eva Cassidy round here. Perhaps the last place on British radio where you'll hear Christopher Cross, he appears to have played a Zucchero record featuring Mark Knopfler yesterday morning. Do you think he really likes all those British Eurovision songs?
3 John Humphrys (Radio 4)
4 Christian O’Connell (Xfm and Radio 5 Live)
Late Radio 1-era Chris Evans without the affability. What in god's name is going on here?
5 Eddie Mair (Radio 4)
6 Peter Allen (Radio 5 Live)
7 Chris Moyles (Radio 1)
Bizarrely, once managed to get Sarah McLachlan as his record of the week. May not have heard of any new bands.
8 Zane Lowe (Radio 1)
I'm glad the industry bods like him, because nobody else seems to. It's all that shouting and whooping, which long ago crossed the line marked 'knowing'.
9 Jane Garvey (Radio 5 Live)
10 Chris Evans
Most recent Radio 2 special show playlist reveals a) complete breakdown towards the end, b) lack of Ivor Cutler albums, c) a lot of cheap TV-advertised compilations.
11 James Naughtie (Radio 4)
12 Rob Cowan (Radio 3)
13 Humphrey Lyttelton (Radio 2 and Radio 4)
Within a gnat's crochet of the original.
14 Johnnie Walker (Radio 2)
Perhaps the last of the ex-pirates to still be on music radio, even if he appears to actually notice the music less and less.
15 Steve Wright (Radio 2)
16 Nick Ferrari (LBC 97.3)
17 Harriet Cass (Radio 4)
18 Fi Glover (Radio 4)
19 Clive Bull (LBC 97.3)
Well, I know he was the observer of Peter Cook's Sven monologues, but beyond that the relevance escapes me.
20 Nick Clarke (Radio 4)
21 Simon Mayo (Radio 5 Live)
Often characterised as a typical nothing to say 80s Radio 1 DJ, but his final show handpicked playlist included Nick Drake and the Ramones, and he attempted to launch the Flaming Lips in the UK.
22 Ian McMillan (Radio 2, Radio 3 and Radio 4)
Of the Shirehorses' A Girl Like You (Hiya) guest vocal fame.
23 Paul Gambaccini (Radio 2)
Possibly this high on reputation alone, but his big book of Billboard Chart facts still keeping up to date on America's Greatest Hits, which meant him introducing early evening Radio 2 slumberers to System Of A Down last Saturday. Who knew?
24 Danny Baker (previously BBC London 94.9)
A primary influence on at least two of the top ten, of course, which you'd have thought might have counted for something. Launched the Spin Doctors in the UK, and nearly Hootie and the Blowfish too. Remains something akin to genius, however. Not having heard his final LDN show, we hope he played out with Sinatra's How About You? as usual.
25 Garry Richardson (Radio 4 and Radio 5 Live)
26 Gerry Anderson (Radio Foyle/Radio Ulster)
27 Mark Radcliffe (Radio 2)
Now appears to select his track selections via a brantub and his new release choices from a Norwegian chart. Still hugely entertaining, of course, although I do tend to get an early night when Sally Lindsay's on.
28 Alan Green (Radio 5 Live)
29 Martha Kearney (Radio 4)
30 Sarah Kennedy (Radio 2)
Music to throw stones at Ken Livingstone's house by.
31 Allan Little (Radio 4)
32 Jeremy Vine (Radio 2)
I was in a cheapo bookshop that has Radio 2 on the other day and Vine was playing Hayseed Dixie's new cover of Outkast's Roses, "shit don't stick" there unedited. This by the looks of it is one of the few times the part of him that picked the Joy Division T-shirt out of the wardrobe for his first R2 publicity photo gets a look-in. No Mark Lamarr, by the way?
33 Tim Westwood (Radio 1)
He's a white bishop's son who talks all funny, you know. He's also credited with being Britain's first rap DJ - not radio DJ, actual DJ - so I doubt he cares. Perhaps playing up to the image a bit these days.
34 Andy Kershaw (Radio 3)
Well, Zimbabwe had to run out of new bands one day.
35 Colin Murray (Radio 1)
No, seriously. Never mind no Edith, not even Steve Lamacq makes it in, and surely he's had more influence over radio from an Evening Session power base. And isn't a twat, obviously.
36 Andrew Marr (Radio 4)
37 Nicky Campbell (Radio 5 Live)
Yeah, OK, I liked the Teasingly Topical Triple Tracker.
38 Edward Stourton (Radio 4)
39 Jenni Murray (Radio 4)
40 Jonathan Pearce (Radio 5 Live)
Er... he's on Three Lions '98? Anyway, proof as if it were needed that industry experts are the last people one should ask about the industry itself.
3 comments:
Jeremy Vine : Huge fan of The Fall. A couple of years ago, played "Leave The Capitol" in it's entirety, as a link to a piece about middle class professionals leaving London for the sticks.
Danny Baker : I was just looking at the BBC LDN (grr) site, and it says he's "on summer holiday". Confusing.
No Lamacq. Astonishing. Even if his stock has dwindled somewhat recently.
And Jonathan Pearce has left radio now anyway.
Ah, I'd forgotten that about Vine, and I've just remembered after that that when he was still being Jimmy Young's stand-in he, for no good reason, played Couldn't Get Ahead and virtually couldn't speak afterwards.
I don't know if it's worth a place on the list, but Lamacq deserves credit for taking the Roundtable-type record review show and managing to make it even duller than the one they used to have on pre-Capital XFM that featured Steve Sutherland chuntering on about Gomez every fucking week. Which takes some doing.
Danny Baker did indeed end on How About You, albeit followed with a bit of Daffy Duck's version of Yesterday. It's all in that juicy 'Suddenly', you know.
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